i]This
may be the church of St Jacob. St Jacob
is the Catholic Church in Rakacza, Borsod, Hungary where for over one hundred
years the Gulybans and their descendants were baptized, married, and buried. It
is a small rural village in the Northeast part of Hungary.
 |
| Borsod within Hungary |
 |
| Rakacza within Borsod upper edge just right of center |
Rakacza is in the county of Borsod, one of the oldest
counties of the Kingdom of Hungary. After the mongol invasion of Hungary, in the
mid-thirteenth century, stone castles were built and the county formed around
the castle.
 |
| typical of a Hungarian Castle |
The castle was named after
it’s original steward Bors. The county
name Borsod means belonging to Bors. The
name Bors is Turkish in origin and means “black pepper” or “peppercorn” in both the old and new
Hungarian although it is no longer used as a personal name.[ii]
[iii]
Grandiose plans were made for magnificent buildings to celebrate the Millennium
in 1896 (the one thousandth anniversary of Hungarians settling down in the
Carpathian Basin.) In spite of the façade
of flourishing plans there were some serious problems in Hungary. Small land owners went bankrupt due to lack
of money and this caused thousands of workers to leave Hungary to find work and
a better life.[iv]
This may have been the reason that Augustinus Gulyban left
Rokacza and set forth to the United States.
He was seventeen years old when he arrived in New York on 16 Mar 1907
via the ship Patricia sailing from Hamburg, Germany. Arriving in New York, Gustav said he was going
to Pricedale, Pa, that he had a ticket to get there and that he had
$10.00. Immigration records show that
his race was Magyar, he was 5 ft 4 in with fair complexion, brown hair, and
grey eyes.
In the 1920 census, Gust was working at the Gaylord Mine in
Martins Ferry, Belmont, Ohio. Gus
remained working in the mines for the rest of his life supporting his wife Mary
and their three surviving children.
Every night Gus knelt on the floor beside his bed and said his
prayers. He kept the faith.
Wonderful information, Donna. I am so impressed!! Maybe next year, I'll try this challenge, too. Keep on keeping on writing!!
ReplyDeleteYes try the challenge. It is people like you who keep me trying to write better. Thanks for all your support.
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